A Long Way to Go
by Meikalina
Summary: Alternate Universe. After Ichigo's death, Karin decides to enter the police force. The story takes place a few months after she broke up with Chad; and begins the day of an important intervention to stop a shootout. The whole affair that will result from this very day will be decisive for Karin's future. (Chad/Karin & other minor pairings)
1. Chapter 1

The day was rainy, just like the past week had kept being.

Trash was slowly flooding the empty streets, riding on the endless waves the sewers were rejecting. Little by little, all the outlines of the city had become a weird blurred draft that resembled something formerly known but now half-forgotten. The dreary silence, only broken by the stubborn cloudbursts, ended convincing the inhabitants of some sort of ancestral forces awakening to mourn about an unknown loss.

At last, that was what Karin Kurosaki was reflecting on, that afternoon. She felt tense; a mood she knew was shared by all of her coworkers. She had drunk so much coffee that she wanted to throw up every single swallow she additionally took. She however tirelessly kept drinking it. It seemed like the only option if she ever wanted to finish filling her damn papers. She could easily sense that the storm was soon about to break in and tear the sky apart; which could probably be one of the reasons to the unexplainable nervousness lately.

Harassed by a never-ending series of sleepless nights, she had quickly found herself aggressively exhausted. No significant event had happened for several months however, nothing that could give an explanation to her restlessness. She didn't know if the persistent weather had an unusual affect on her, or if she actually was coming down with something. She stretched out a bit and rested her forehead in her hands, rubbing softly her temples. She wasn't only edgy; she was kind of worried about something she couldn't identify properly for the moment. And that annoyed her really, really strongly.

"Hey Rukia. I'm taking a break. I'm going to have another coffee, want some?"

"You haven't finished yours yet."

"It's cold. I don't want it."

"Well, yes. Thank you."

The brunette went out at first, sheltered from the rain by the awning. She deeply inhaled the fresh air, and appreciated the humidity for a bit. She hated smoking outside when it rained, but grabbed her pack of cigarette with an annoyed sigh anyway. She needed to relax very badly, this fucking work seemed boundless, and for once she was sleepy as hell.

Karin sat, lying against the wall, smoking quietly. She had been in the police for five years now. She never really knew what she wanted to do "as a grown-up" so she wandered from different studies to others, until the day her brother unexplainably died. No one saw that coming, and no valuable cause for this sudden disappearance had ever been given. She only learned it was during a blaze. But what was he doing here? Was it not a criminal fire? Why were the criminals never found and arrested? And how come he couldn't escape, he who was so streetwise? Those were to remain unanswered questions.

Her mother first, and then him. She certainly knew she could not avenge them, but she decided she wanted to prevent any event of the kind to occur again. She just was confusingly weary of that shit at the moment. Nothing interesting had happened for a while; it was always the same routine, amends, small infractions, papers, a few complaints, papers, false alarms, papers, always papers, never-ending fucking boring hateful papers. She wanted fucking adrenaline and fucking no papers. That was a lot of fuck.

A slow hissing escaped her lips as the thought crossed her mind. She was even tired of herself. Why on earth was she so susceptible at the moment?

She decided to come back inside and get these coffees, when she noticed bustle in the corner of the street. She remained still for a second, and screwed up her eyes, trying to focus. She almost immediately recognized some fellow agents running down to the building. Two of them briskly got in without noticing her, and the last one, Madarame, stopped.

"Kurosaki? What are you doing here?"

"Well, I'm taking a break. What's going on?"

"Haven't you heard the order? Get ready to leave in like… Thirty seconds, there is some shooting northward, we're going up there"

"Ok, I'm… Wait, what? Now?"

"Move!"

"Yes sir!"

Some action at last! She shouldn't have been happy. _That_ happy. She decided to work there because she wanted those events to stop, she should have been _glad_ to do _papers_. But fuck principles right now. She needed to be distracted of herself.

Thirty actual seconds later, she was in the car, armed and ready to kick some asses. Well, that wasn't absolutely true, but at last ready to react whatever would happen.

She was surprised however, as she saw the parking lot emptying, by the unusual amount of mobilized agents. Ordinarily, only the combat experts like Ikkaku where sent on the battlefield. She knew a few people from the crew, and hoped to join it soon. She trained hard to be admissible into the general drilling, and potentially integrate it.

She had already met Madarame and Yumichika, always stuck together. The sight of them systematically amused her. They seemed to be each other's perfect opposite, and still… She hardly knew two people getting along so well. She had encountered Tatsuki too, whom she enjoyed the company very much. And she had obviously heard about the terrifying Kenpachi. Never met him though. Except for the troops he trained with, the 11th division, very few people actually did. And if they _did_ , it was generally not good prospects.

He was said to have mastered every imaginable weapon in the world, notably bladed weapon, which was kind of rare in the 21st century police. He nevertheless also had a solid reputation as a sniper, but was said to hate it; preferring far more being in the battlefield and directly facing his opponents. The man was reputed to be a virtuoso of the slaughtering which led him into rarely actually intervening. Only when the situation was said to be "desperate", when the security of policemen, hostages or civilians was no longer assured. He was not really sent to arrest, frighten or negotiate. When Zaraki entered the game, it was to eliminate.

Karin thought that if he wasn't on their side, he would probably be imprisoned, since murder seemed to be the logical outcome of any of his confrontations, and since he also appeared to have an animalistic hunger for blood. Being a part of the police sort of tamed his frustration, but how much was uncertain. Then, with a shiver, she came to actually doubt that they would have succeeded in capturing him and put the man behind bars.

Zaraki… This monster frightened her probably as much as he fascinated her. She _dreamt_ to train with him, to see him execute his art. So much to learn. She wondered why she wanted so badly to learn how to fight. But that definitely was a need.

She sighed while the car was hurtling down the dull boulevards of the suburbs. She looked at the black clouds wandering over their heads. It seemed that the light was running away.

When they crossed a channel, she suddenly found herself confronted to her own pale reflection in the window. Surprised, she stared at it a few seconds, and before she could turn her head away from the vision, they were outside again, with only the rain for company in the deserted alleys.

By the time they arrived, the sky was even darker. It was something like four in the afternoon, but it looked like twilight. The deluge intensified, making the driving harder; and rendering everyone even more jumpy, if that was possible in such a situation. The storm was approaching drastically.

No one could say if the driver was really strained and hardly handled the drenched macadam, or if he just wanted to do a sort of movie-like sliding — since he almost crashed the car. He eventually managed to immobilize it safely next to the others, and all the cops swept out the vehicle, starting to run in diverse directions. They were dozens.

Imitating the others, Karin crossed the courtyard where they were more or less parked. She covered herself behind a huge trashcan half spilled on the ground and took aim at the front open door. She could see nothing but darkness beyond it. She hadn't much to do; she was just here to guard the exit. She quickly glanced all over the place. It was creepy. Well, it was a disused and abandoned building as she had seen many others, but she couldn't tell why this very place made her feel particularly uncomfortable. Was it some junky squat or something? Oh, or maybe it was just the weather. The weather made all peculiar and uncanny today. She focused again on the door. Now she just had to wait the most patiently she could.

The water was soaking everything. She felt that even her boots didn't protected her damp feet anymore, and she wondered if her gun could actually work. A flash of lightning tore the clouds above them, almost immediately followed by the sinister grunt of the thunder.

 _All right, the storm is here. Those fucking idiot thugs chose their moment. My life is a fucking movie today._

There weren't a lot of cops left in the courtyard, most of them being inside, she supposed. She heard fight-like sounds, screams and shots. Then all was silent again. She kept concentrating, trying to guess from where exactly the sounds were coming. Just like the door, every broken window revealed nothing but obscurity.

Then she heard one of her colleague use the loudspeaker.

"We know you're in there. This is the end. You are surrounded. Please surrender now, and you won't be done any harm."

Karin chuckled. They always tried the non-violent solutions, but it just never worked. The thunder threatened them once more. Her eyes widened as she heard a deep, husky and confident voice rumbling an answer.

"Ok. I'll surrender. I'm unarmed anyway. Please wait outside. I'm coming."

Her first deduction was that despite the elevated number of agents sent inside the building, he had somehow remained uncaught. Whether it was because he defeated them or because he was hiding was yet to discover. However she couldn't find the reason why he accepted to surrender like… Like just like that? Just because he was asked to?

The second thing that drew her attention was his voice. He sounded unexpectedly calm. She was used to fear, anger, fury, despair, madness, or cold resignation. If the noise of the rain prevented her from hearing him well, she could still tell that his voice was measured, profound, mastered.

She discerned some movement, but she couldn't guess if it was he or her colleagues. And suddenly her blood ran cold. Like, very, very cold, a cold she had never felt in her entire life, a polar cold that froze her members, clutched her heart and cut her breath. A sharp cold so painful she wondered how she had stayed conscious.

"Is Karin Kurosaki among you? I'll surrender, but I want _her_ to arrest me."


	2. Chapter 2

He was in the shadow, just behind the doorframe. She couldn't see him, but feel his presence. She didn't move at all. She was unable to. Actually, the request was so unexpected that no one motioned for a few seconds. Disconcerted, the man with the loudspeaker eventually replied.

"You shall surrender whoever comes to arrest you"

"I shall. I am afraid I would break an arm or two in the process. I know any resistance is pointless, and that you will shoot me if I am being difficult. But all of this can end with no more hurting. I just have this one request."

"Surrender, now."

"Sure."

Without noticing it, Karin, still static, started to quiver. If this person's arrogance and self-confidence was infuriating, his composed and patient tone was baffling.

However, what actually terrified her were not all of these unsettling details, but definitely the _voice_. Why this voice was so, so not supposed to remind something? Why did she feel that hearing this voice now, despite all the clamor around and all the invisible agitation, was the worst omen she could have encountered?

The man made a few steps, and finally exposed himself to the downpour while entering the dim electric light of the courtyard. He was almost immediately illuminated by a lightening. Karin, already unmoving before, petrified from stupor. Her brain disjointed. She had known the man's identity from the beginning, somehow. Now she just could not avoid the truth any longer.

He stood with dignity for a few seconds. Being two meters tall, his presence seemed to fill the whole place. Dust had turned his white tank top to grey, but that wasn't enough to mask the ostentatiously huge scarlet stains on it. It was torn in many places. The tan face of the giant was a half hidden by his wet curvy hair, but the brunette still managed to discern injuries and cuts, apparently superficial. He was covered by blood, as if leaking from everywhere. It didn't look like it was his _own_ , though. He both looked like a monster, and an apparition. He was sinister and magnificent. He was Yasutora Sado.

Karin wanted to swallow, but that was beyond her ability.

Almost immediately, a myriad of green points covered him. She did not think so many snipers would be mobilized. That meant there were probably very few guys inside; which explained why they had not arrested the titan yet. He casually raised his hands. How could he be so nonchalant? Did he think it was just a game? He appeared to find the whole situation tastefully entertaining.

"See? Unarmed."

A few agents rushed to him. He didn't recognize any of them as being Karin and started to protest. When they reached him, he kept his promise. He tore the arm of the first one, which gloomily cracked. Karin retched as she heard the guy shout out of pain. Some others tried to help, but the giant released the first victim straight away to grab simultaneously the arms of two newcomers, and break them unceremoniously. Despite his wounds and likely tiredness, his unnatural rapidity caught every single officer off-guard.

As he did so, she noticed that he took care to bend his knees as much as he could, in order to shelter himself behind their bodies. Doing so, if the snipers decided to shoot him — even if he wasn't technically armed — they'd have hardly not killed the policemen. Additionally, as the green lasers nervously danced to-and-fro between the agonizing cops and the giant himself, she realized; probably concomitantly as everyone else, that bringing so many snipers was a mistake. Whose visors were aiming at _him_ and not their allies?

He carefully stepped back, still protected, while the two hostages were faintly moaning. What on earth was happening? They had specially trained agents for that kind of situation, where the hell were they?

"Alright, I'm getting tired of this shit. Kurosaki, go up there. Let's finish this."

So, this was her moment. She inhaled deeply, concentrated to not shake and exposed herself to the man's view. He chucked the two cops away and straightened up, as a soldier would do in front of a superior. The other agents who weren't injured apprehensively stood by him, a few steps aside. He did not move. He just waited patiently for her to reach him.

Karin took off the security of her gun, and pointed it at him. She sincerely tried to look as threatening as possible. Unfortunately, she was utterly aware that at this very moment, the most relatable color of her face was probably close to a delicate green.

Out of necessity, she glanced in his direction, but carefully avoided to look at him directly. She sort of gazed at the whole shape of his body, concentrating on everything but pretending to not recognize him. Trembling or not, she nonetheless determinably crossed the courtyard, went up the few steps, and finally, after sensing every single of her muscle tightening up, faced him. The overpowering din of the rain disappeared. The cold, the water, all the other agents around her: everything melted, leaving only the two of them staring blankly at each other.

He smiled. He _smiled_? This idiot was all goofy and cheerful, just as if they were alone. That shit was unreal. She made a subhuman effort to remain detached and cold. She was still pointing her gun directly on his chest. He did not seem impressed. The sound of his hoarse voice delicately brushed her unprepared ears.

"Hi Karin."

"Give me your hands."

He slowly but immediately raised them a bit, enough for her to handcuff him. It's while doing so that she noticed blood was also incrusted under his nails. The rain was slowly washing him, and a dreadful red pond ominously grew around him.

"What the hell are you doing, you crazy?"

"I wanted to see you again."

As a brutally loud rumbling echoed him, she was savagely precipitated back in the hostile environment around her. Only a few seconds passed before another flash of lightening with a simultaneous thunder ravaged the place. Her eyes widened. He looked so glad, so peaceful and innocent, and yet he was probably as much swamped by water as by blood. As time went by, the red pond kept spreading around him, like a haunting shadow revealing what the eyes couldn't meet.

"I didn't know you were _that_ stupid. You fucking absurd jer—"

"I missed you."

"What have you done…"

The others would have usually intervened, but they were curiously and uncertainty listening, waiting for something to happen. Chad was so docile by then; he didn't look dangerous anymore, even considering he was uncomfortably almost twice her size. The brunette didn't wait for him to answer. She pulled him in the direction of a car where she flung him unceremoniously. She only had to forget he was standing there, looking at her, smiling and acting as if everything was completely normal. All she had to do was to snatch him from this unreal place, and send him back to where he belonged: the past. Before slamming the door on his face, her last words were a venomous hissing.

"You have the right to remain silent."

The car carrying Chad hurtled off. At the very same moment, the ambulance entered the courtyard. They had almost forgotten that there were other people up there.

Karin looked at the police car as if it was a recurrent nightmare fading out in the opalescent nightfall: she wished to never remember it, but she knew that this vision would haunt her for many, many nights. Old wound had been re-opened. The thunder mumbled again and the light was more uncertain than ever, fluctuating at every second.

Tatsuki carefully approached, but the smirk she was unable to dissimulate deepened the brunette's brooding. She really, _really_ wasn't in the mood for putting up with her acolyte's remarks, whatsoever they would be. If she intended to sound dry and exasperated, she was horrified to hear her own voice as feeble and coarse.

"Hey Karin. That was something."

"Wow, I handcuffed somebody. Biggest intervention of the year."

"Do you still want to be part of the special force?"

"Not sure. Where the hell were you? You were needed _down there_."

Arisawa gauged her friend and crossed her arms before answering.

"We were verifying that there wasn't any other threat. You do realize that for a shooting and a brawl of this measure, several people were involved. This building is huge, and it took some time. We heard you people needed help, but thanks to your mind-blowing intervention, everything was in order, and we decided to finish our job. So, you still want to be a part of it?"

"More than ever."

"If that warms you up… I guess you'll be noticed after that… Thing."

"I wish…"

"So… How does it feel to have a psycho secret voyeur obsessed with you?"

"He's my ex boyfriend."

"Oh my… Wow, I, uh I'm sorry. Did he… Uh, was he already, um like that?"

"Like what?"

"Violent?"

"No. He's always been physically able to do that, but he has never _ever_ been violent."

"So why was he…"

"Don't misunderstand him. This carnage was a way to get to something, not his actual goal, not an end in itself. I guess he found no other way around this."

"Uh. Still crazy."

"I'm still trying to figure out how he could have concluded _this_ was the best solution. Maybe he has turned mad indeed."

"What are you gonna do?"

"What the fuck do you want me to do?"

"I dunno. Are you gonna help him?"

"How and _why_ would I do that? We've broken up a few months ago. And he'll soon be in jail, for _murder_ , I don't think I _really_ need that."

"I agree. It's just… Do you still love him?"

"Hell no. I'm just a bit… Pitying him. And embarrassed. I had some kind of old weird affection, but I think it just vanished. That's it. I don't know what to do with him. He's so dumbly stubborn sometimes. This little piece of shit."

"Oh right. Remind me to never ever become your ex boyfriend."

Karin scowled at a friend with a renewed intensity that was close to hatred.

"I was just trying to cheer you up."

"Don't bother. You're making it worse."

"Okay. Nice talking to you. See you later."

She wanted to apologize, but didn't find the courage to do so, and watched her friend leaving. She shuddered. She bet that the next time they'd see each other, both would act as if she hadn't just been a dickhead. That thought softened her.

The ambulance men coming back from the building spared Karin to keep feeling guilty about the way she treated Tatsuki. She usually liked to spend some time with her, but the last thing she wanted to talk about was Chad, and especially about what just happened.

What was brought out of the crime scene was terrifying. There was a total of three corpses and five severely injured people, unconscious for most of them. They were all portentously covered by the same crystallized brown-red substance. The amount of blood up there must have been horrendously gigantic. Even the rain was inefficient to completely wash them off. Did Chad do all of this? What kind of demon had he been locking in forever and decided to released today?

The victims all looked like sort of trampy-junky hoodlums. They seemed pretty young for most of them. Karin had no idea what all those people could have in common, and why they were there today. And why goddamn why Chad was involved with them. But investigating wasn't her job. Her implication in this affair was over.

Still, thanks to that freaking idiot, everyone was just _staring_ at her. Whispering bullshit, she'd bet. Well, that really was a hell of a day. And she wasn't done yet. She looked at the chaos around her. Completely disheartened.

Once back at her workplace, she took the longest time possible to have a prolonged and boiling shower in order to relax a minimum, but her back muscle had turned into iron. Eventually, she just had the time to look for a coffee that she was interrupted in her thoughts.

"Karin? Are you there?"

"Nanao is that you? I'm having a coffee."

"Ah, there you are. Your presence is required in Yamamoto's office."

The young girl only frowned in response.

"Karin: your presence is required _now_."

"Uh… Alright? Did I do something wrong? I don't understand?"

Nanao paused, then softly chuckled before answering in a gentle and compassionate tone.

"Nothing that I'm aware of, but don't you think that you were involved in something a bit… Unusual?"

"Ah, _that_ … Yes. Maybe. Already heard of that, uh?"

She re-adjusted her glasses and winked at her.

"I'm sorry for you… But the whole basement talks about that. Like… Right now."

"Greaaat. Today is getting better and better, really."

"Nanao? I need you sweetheart! Where is my favorite secretary?"

"I'm coming Shunsui! And stop calling me that. I'm your only secretary."

Nanao rolled her eyes as yelling so, and gave Karin a knowing glance before saluting her. For once, the small brunette was the one who couldn't hold her smirk, but she resisted the temptation to make any comment about the handsome captain that was calling her colleague "sweetheart".

"See you later, Karin. Good luck!"

"Yeah, thanks. You too, I guess…"

The girl sighed. Her amusement didn't last long. As soon as she was left alone again, she felt her features collapse. She wondered what the interview with the master would be like, but she wasn't really hurried to discover it. She went anyway. Shambling.


	3. Chapter 3

"Good evening Kurosaki. Have a seat."

Karin silently obeyed, and waited. The old man in front of her was in all appearances poised and dignified. Only his concerned and severe gaze sharpened by his bushy eyebrows betrayed his internal agitation. He crossed his fingers on his desktop and started speaking cautiously.

"So. It seems we have a sort of irregular situation here."

"You don't say…"

"You will hand me over a report. You can be considered as a sort of witness of the way he surrendered. That might be important during the trial, considering that denouement was… Infrequent."

"Oooh great. I hadn't enough paper to do, what a brilliant idea."

He didn't reply, but frowned at her. His stare was penetrating and scolding. He exhaled authority. She swallowed, wriggled a bit on her chair, looked down and said nothing more. She'd try to look serene, but being in Yamamoto's office made a big impression on her, and she presently wasn't quite overconfident. There was a vivid fire in the man's eyes that she couldn't bear.

He started speaking again, still very composed. Opposite to him, the brunette felt flattened, unable to keep appearances up. She avoided his gaze as much as she could.

"I was saying, _you will hand me over a report_. Of what you witnessed. You had a unique contact with our man; your point of view might reveal some essential clues, every detail can be important. Make it precise."

"I will."

"I have something to ask you. You formerly knew that man, am I right?"

"You are."

"I do not care what is your history with him. You should have told your senior officials he was wounded and needed hospitalization. You cannot, and can never let your personal feelings interfere with your work. I will close my eyes on this lapse for this once. We can pretext, probably deservedly, that you were distraught because he was an acquaintance. However, now that you have experienced this kind of conflicted situation, if a similar case has to occur again, and that is an _order_ , you will be able to master your emotions. And hopefully, nothing of this kind will do happen again, or that would mean you shall choose more carefully your relations. This was your first and last chance; I will not let you have another one. Is that perfectly _clear_?"

Karin had stopped listening to him from the moment he mentioned the concept of _hospital_. He was indeed a bit hurt, but _hospitalized_? She realized he was expecting an answer when she noticed he wasn't speaking anymore and waited for her to react.

"I… Beg your pardon? Hospitalization?"

"He was gunshot on several places and critically hurt. Did you not _notice_?"

"I… No! No, really! He just looked so… calm and confident. I saw he was bleeding, but I never suspected he'd be _that_ injured. I even thought that most of this blood wasn't his own, I, I supposed that he mostly got some contusions and bruises, nothing more. I would have done something, believe me!"

He suddenly closed his eyes and noisily sighed. He slowly rubbed his eyelids. Karin thought that he looked very old and tired, and wondered for a second why a man like him was still in charge. Then the sole memory of his piercing glare came back to her mind, and the flamboyance of this image seemed to burn her retinae. She was nothing. She was sitting in front of a legend, and she was debilitating nonsense. Of course he was tired. It must be exhausting to deal with retarded subordinates like her. Her throat clenched.

"Actually, I somehow _do_ believe you. You see, Kurosaki… That really _is_ a strange situation we have. It seems that _no one_ noticed he was _that much_ injured. Only when he was asked to take off his cloths during the procedure did the guards see the wounds. He had two bullets in the abdomen and a third in the right lung. He should have been dead, unconscious, or at least be in some sort of bad way. But no. He was resolutely standing straight, and at the same time docilely executing everything he was asked to. Unconcerned, and apparently unconscious of his own weakness. However, even if he did not seem to take note of a likely, let's say _discomfort_ , it would have only taken a couple of hours to definitely kill him. This is why he was urgently hospitalized. I believe the surgeon Unohana took him in charge. She works at your father's hospital, doesn't she?"

"Yes, she does…"

"Anyway. I am reluctant to ask you about personal matters, but I have to. Do you know anything about it? About this abnormal resistance? Do you know if he suffers from any illness that annihilates the sense of pain? It might avoid us some trouble, otherwise I can hardly explain how a whole crew ignored he was dying. So do you have information about that?"

"Very few, actually. He told me once that when he was a kid, he fought a lot with others, and that he didn't understand from where his strength was coming from. He thought he was sort of gifted with it. One day, apparently, his grandfather would have protected him when he was behind the eight ball. Because there were too many guys or something like that. And from then on, he decided not to fight anymore, so when people attacked him, he would just take the hitting, and never seemed to even feel them. He was just standing, still. And that ability — or resistance, call it as you wish — increased as he grew. He started to frighten people, because he didn't even move of an inch under the pressure of blows, he was just like a sort of statue. I am not sure you can draw any useful conclusion with that piece of information, but that's all I know. He rarely talked about this specificity, and when he did, it was in a sort of… Devout way … He was lucky with his genes, I suppose."

"That is… Well, I have indeed nothing to conclude. What is still retaining my attention is that you mentioned he decided to stop wrestling. Do you have an idea of _what_ could have drowned him back into such a pit of boundless violence?"

Karin tried to swallow again, but her mouth was dry. She felt her heartbeat accelerating, then dangerously decelerating, before racing up again. For a few seconds, her vision was blurred. She realized she was sweating. She felt hot, and wondered if she had fever. This whole story, and plunging again in those dolorous memories made her feel nauseous. She was already exhausted, and now, all of _this_. She took a moment to master her breathing, and looked at the dark, starless sky outside, reflecting perfectly her inner state. The intense rain swallowed all the overview up. She gulped deeply and gathered herself.

"No, I have no idea. I lost contact with him a few months ago. I don't know what he's been up to lately, and surely not if he was involved in shady business with those people. I am sorry that I can't help you more."

"I hear what you are saying. But I am trying to understand. For someone against the use of his bare hands to any conflictive extent, it seems a bit surprising to find oneself involved in gun shooting and a bloody massacre."

"As far as I know him, he used to say he would always categorically refuse to use a gun or any firearm. But he also said that he would never fight again, so… I'm not sure what I still can believe or not. Anyway, from all I've heard, I still can say that using a gun is what looks the less like him."

"I see. There still are three corpses. Keeping everything in proportion, he is the only one who escaped this butchery in a good condition. There will be an investigation, obviously. But you will admit that at first, it seems inevitable to charge him."

"I agree with you. Appearances do not favor his innocence. I told you what I knew. Investigating and stating someone guilty or not is not my job."

"And you are right. Well. I will try to keep you out of this as much as I can. Nevertheless, in function of the trial's orientation, I'd rather warn you… It is possible that you will be required in order to testify."

"Yes, sir."

"If you come to remember or discover anything new that might help the investigation going forward, please, inform the 6th division. If you doubt about anything, or consider something might have been unnoticed but is relevant to you, do not hesitate to refer to your captain, he should be able to advise or help you. Remember to protect and take care of yourself, and keep your superiors informed if you feel threatened in any way. For the moment, Mr. Sado seems to have been acting on his own, but we can't know for sure, and the last thing we want is to have our recruits endangered."

"I understand."

"You may leave now."

She stood and left in one smooth movement, without adding anything. The color of her face was oscillating between grey and green. She sensed that an incredibly huge weight had comfortably settled on her shoulders.

She left her working place at last, with only one wish: going into her bed and forget about everything. Maybe this nightmare would have faded out in the morning and her life would go back to normal. Sure, her daily routine hadn't been brilliant these past weeks, but this day had definitely made all ten thousand times worse.

She stood under the building's awning for a while, looking at the deluge tirelessly hitting the worn-out ground. How many days had it been long? She started to believe that rain had been falling since she was born. She remained motionless for a few minutes. It was already late, but before going to sleep, she had one more task to accomplish, probably the hardest of the whole day. She had to go to the hospital. She had to _face_ him. There were some things she needed to hear from his mouth. She clamped her fists and stepped under the monstrous downpour, offering her little frame to its almighty caprices. Her cheap umbrella seemed ridiculously unfitted to resist the assault of the elements. She evolved alone in the city toward her aim, surrounded by violence and solitude.


	4. Chapter 4

It's eventually shuffling over that she came into the hospital. Even though she had grown up there, she had never got used to the bleach smell, the tarnished white and dirty turquoise. At that time in the evening, the place was almost empty. At least she wouldn't be bothered by the noise and aggressed by the agitation after her long day. Knowing perfectly the place, she directly went to the reception desk and asked in which room was settled Sado Yasutora. The receptionist raised a dubious eyebrow before answering her.

"I can't let you do this. He is going to be incarcerated. No visits are allowed."

"That's _precisely_ why I'm here. Seriously, for such a long time, you _do_ know I'm working for the police, don't you?"

"Yeah, but he is your —"

"This is strictly _professional_. Give me the access, thank you and go back to your work."

"You can't give me orders."

"Actually… Yes, I can. I hate to behave like this, but for god's sake just give the number of his room already."

The girl in front of her rolled her eyes, sighed and reluctantly gave her the electronic key of his room.

"The number of the room is on the key. I warn you, I don't want any problem, so if he runs out when you come in or _whatever_ happens, you'll be held responsible. Sign here."

"What do you mean? There aren't guards to watch him over?"

"No. He's locked in."

"So the only thing that holds him in here is… _This_? A _key_?"

"Usually that works for people. A key, and a door. You know, unmovable solid matter."

"He is no normal people."

"Come on. Don't get sassy because he's your ex. His room is on the sixth floor. The door is very thick and has been specifically designed to be resistant, whether a potential assault should come from the interior _or_ the exterior. Last but not least, he's been operated only three hours ago. He comes back from a near-death experience. He's recovering in his bed, and shouldn't be transferred for a few days for this very reason. There is no way he can escape by himself."

"Sure. I see you don't know yet what he's able to."

After rolling her eyes even more flagrantly because of impatience and exasperation, the receptionist was on the verge to snap something back, but was cut short when another girl burst in and _literally_ jumped on Karin to hug her; so she just went back to her business, mumbling grumpily.

"Karin! I'm so glad to see you! Guess who's in there?"

Yuzu was probably the only person that could give Karin her smile back in harsh moments like this. It was impossible to resist the overflowing and contaminating good mood of the strawberry blonde girl. The brunette gently patted the head of her sister.

"Hey you. I'm glad to see you too. And guess _why_ I am here?"

"You're coming to see hiiiiiim, I knew it! You're getting back together?"

"Hum, Yuzu… Have you heard _anything_ about the conditions he came in?"

"Not really. I've been on duty for only an hour, I've just seen his name on paper sheets and that he was stable since a successful operation… What's the matter?"

"I'm here for him because of work. He is under arrest. I have to ask him a few questions about what happened, and _that's it_."

"Oh I… See. Um. Sorry. I guess."

"Don't worry sis. He's nothing for me now."

"But what did he do? How can he be under arrest? He's like the nicest man I have ever met… And he was Ichigo's best friend!"

"I know all that. It's a bit complicated and still very muddy. We're trying to figure out how much he's involved. I am not sure you want all the details of why he's arrested."

"I… Okay. Are you alright?"

"Of course I am. I told you. He is past history. I don't care about what happens to him."

"You are very strong, Karin. _I_ would care a lot if I were in a situation like this. I wouldn't be able not to. I wish I was strong as you are."

"Oh… I… Uh, no, it has nothing to do with being strong, it's just that… He's like a _stranger_ now, you know? And if that's such a big deal for you, I hope you'll never have to be "as strong as I am". Just remain the way you are. By the way, we should have lunch together one of this days, don't you think?"

"Definitely! Give me a call! I'm getting back to work now!"

"Right. See you soon!"

"Love you!"

As soon as Yuzu left, the smile and provisory warmed-up temper of Karin melted. The presence of her sister had an incredible appeasing effect on her, the problem being that it ceased to operate as soon as she wasn't there anymore. The brunette felt even more down now. She felt bad about lying to Yuzu, but she couldn't let her worry for her, she had made this promise to herself since forever, she wouldn't fail this promise now. Yuzu was too caring about everything. The least Karin could do for her was to not be a burden. She looked at the key in her hand. Well, when it was time…

She reluctantly decided to use the stairs to retard the moment she'd meet him. When she arrived in front of the door, she listened a bit, but she evidently couldn't hear anything behind the massive partition, and, as she discovered, the airlock.

She felt tense as she entered the room plunged into darkness, and tried to master her shaking members. Why on Earth was her stupid body incapable to be resilient and still every time she had to encounter him? That was seriously irritating, and her nerves needed anything but this.

This moron had been operated a few hours ago, right? That probably was _completely_ _normal_ to see that he was standing, outside his bed, watching the rain's race through the window. The thunder was still resonating somewhere in the distance. The storm was far away now, but its presence was still subtly noticeable.

Chad looked reflexive. He damn should be thinking. He was in such a mess. He turned round when he heard Karin closing the door. His seriousness immediately disappeared and an enormous silly smile covered his face. His tone was soft however.

"Hi Karin. I'm glad to see you."

She ignored his comment, settled herself in front of him and stared directly in his eyes. Trying to probe his thoughts.

"Did you kill those men?"

"No."

"Are you _sure_?"

"Yes."

"You know that without proofs, _no one_ will believe you?"

"I don't care. I know _you_ believe me."

"Awww, that's so sweet… But, do you remember that, somehow, there is a LAW? And that you'll finish your days in jail, you stupid absolute idiot?"

He said nothing. Just gazed at her, smiling. Karin sighed and sat on the mattress. She noticed only then that all the perfusions that should have ended up in his arm were meaninglessly hanging next to the bed. She frowned back at Chad again. He seemed to be in such a good state; that was unnerving. She'd probably never completely get used to it.

"Why were you there though?"

"I told you. I wanted to see you again. To talk to you."

"Stop making fun of me. I almost believed you earlier. I can't be the only reason. You knew those people, right?"

He remained silent, and kept smiling.

"Chad, answer me. I need to know. Don't you dare include me in your shit. It's already _extremely_ troublesome for a lot of reasons, please don't make this even more complicated."

"I have already responded to your question. I am sorry."

"Okay, wait a second. So you are telling me you _really_ involved yourself in a fight and a killing, with more than suspicious guys _just to see me again_? Can you be _more_ irresponsible? Pardon me, more _foolish_?"

"You wouldn't call me back."

She had risen while saying this. She realized she was completely losing her mind when she noticed that she had started punching him. He didn't even tittered.

"Okay, alright, I take it back. ARE YOU _INSANE_? You fool! You complete stupid fool! Do you realize you get so _hard_ on my nerves I forgot you were operated and now I'm hitting you?"

She stopped to better shout at him.

"You almost DIED, and for what? For going into jail? _Please_ , tell me there is a _real_ reason for all of this."

"It was the only way to get in touch. I knew you wouldn't fail your job."

And then, she started to yell in an abnormally high-pitched tone. Her voice was breaking. He initiated a comforting gesture, but she knocked his arm off her.

"And what about all your sweet principles? That you didn't want to fight or be violent again? That you wouldn't use your _absurd_ strength to hurt but to protect? What have you done to _yourself_?"

"Well, in my defense, I did not start the fight, so I did defend myself. I agree that was easy. By the way, those people would have killed more if that didn't happen. But above all, I wanted to see you more than anything else."

And finally, all of a sudden, she was very calm again, as if struck by resignation; as if completely crushed by some extreme heavy pain, a pain she hadn't the strength to fight anymore. She had even lost the will to understand what was happening, because everything was all blurred and surreal and for god's sake, that hurt so _much_.

"I can't believe it. I just can't believe it. You must be lying, or that means you're frankly disturbed. I just can't take it Chad. At first I thought I didn't want to talk to you, but now I think I just _can't_. This is just bullshit. Just huge bullshit."

The brunette turned her back and made a few steps toward the door. As he spoke again, he sounded both despondent to see Karin leaving and hopeful about her answer. He however made no attempt at following her.

"Will you come back?"

"Didn't you hear anything? Are you deaf now?"

"This is my last chance. I won't waste it. And don't worry; you don't need to talk if you don't want to. I'll wait for your next visit."

"I'm so sorry for you, Chad. But you sound so insane. I don't know what happened to you, but I think I'm genuinely sorry."

She said nothing more and closed the door behind her. He smiled. He actually never did something that foolish, but he was certainly, absolutely, confidently sane. He was just ready to do anything.


	5. Chapter 5

For the first time in a week, Karin had slept like a log. She was still dressed with her cloths of the day before. She had come in, collapsed on her bed and immediately fallen asleep. But she needed damn more. Her eyelids were stuck to her cheekbones. She hardly opened her eyes, and regretted it straight away, since her memories started to swarm. Irritated, she almost snatched her curtains from her window, and was blinded for a few seconds by the luminosity. The sky was white, as covered by a uniform and endless sheet made of clouds. The weather finished to depress her. She even preferred the storm of the previous day.

She started slowly her daily routine with a reinforced bad mood. Her eggs and bacon burnt. She put too much water in her coffee, so she made a second one, but drank it so fast she almost vomited the whole of it. She realized she was late and took a cold shower so she wouldn't fall asleep or be tempted to remain two hours long under the deliciously comforting warmth of the water; but the temperature made her body tighten up, and she felt even sicker after the failed breakfast.

The brunette ignored her nausea and rushed to her car. She was too much in a hurry to put make-up on, even the very little she usually used. She consoled herself in thinking that if her co-workers saw the dark rings under her eyes and her ashy complexion, they would probably stop bothering her, making fun and mentioning Chad for the day. That would definitely be nice, since she couldn't stop constantly thinking about him despite herself, and wondering what was her part of responsibility in this butchery. She knew he was patient and extremely stubborn, but for once it would have been better if he had not decided to come back in her life with that suddenness.

She had to stop on the way to puke on the roadside.

When Karin finally arrived at work, she noticed that Rukia had already bought her a coffee. It was waiting on her desk, still steaming. She turned round in order to thank the brunette, but she looked down and avoided her glance, obviously embarrassed. Disconcerted, Karin reached her.

"Hey. You did buy this coffee, didn't you?"

"Yes. It was to, hum… Comfort you a bit, before… You will be interrogated."

" _What_? Why? When? How do you know that?"

"My brother. He's working in the investigation department. He is in charge for this case."

"Oh. Well, I'll be glad to meet him."

"I… Hem, I'm not so sure about that. You know how much I love him. I genuinely do. Still, I am aware that meeting him within the framework of questioning can be… Let's say it isn't the best way to appreciate him. However, Renji will be there too. I suppose he won't tell much, but at least his presence should temperate the inconvenience."

"O…K?"

Karin had to admit she was slightly confused. She had never properly met Byakuya Kuchiki, just scarcely glimpsed him in the morning when everyone was going to his or her barracks; but she had always heard her petite friend talk about her brother in a very admiring and tender tone. This sudden change was literally a plot twist, and she would have definitely preferred to learn about this earlier. However, they barely ended their conversation that the brother silently appeared in the room. His sudden presence seemed to make the temperature of the place dramatically fall. He addressed her with a neutral yet freezing tone. Hm. She started to understand what Rukia meant.

"Miss Kurosaki I assume?"

"Yes…?"

"Regarding of the events of yesterday, and your implication in their unfolding, I need to proceed to an interrogation. Are you available now?"

"Yes."

"Do you want to call your attorney?"

"No, I'll be fine."

"Then follow me please."

"Ok…"

Renji was shyly following him. Karin found disturbingly unpleasant to see someone as confident and lovingly dorky as Renji act so timidly. At first he only gave her a nod, but when Byakuya left to open the way, he gave her a small smile of encouragement and a compassionate look. It became suddenly very clear why he was so much impressed by his boss. Abarai had been promoted to the rank of vice-captain very recently, so she supposed captain Byakuya was still teaching him everything he had to know now he was in charge, but Karin thought painfully that working with someone like him was probably not very gratifying everyday. Renji didn't seem to be even allowed to say anything; just to be present, listen, observe, and learn. It was probably efficient, but she wondered if he was left any chance to show he could have initiatives.

Once they got settled in the interrogatory room, Byakuya didn't even glance at her. He just followed a list of questions he had prepared and took notes of her answers. First of all, he showed her a picture of Chad.

"Do you know that man?"

"Yes."

"Can you tell me his name?"

"Sado Yasutora."

"What is your relationship with him?"

"He's my ex boyfriend."

"Are you still in contact?"

"No. With the exception of the present case, the last time I saw him was a few months ago."

"Have you ever heard or acknowledged the fact that he was practicing any illegal activity?"

"No."

"Anything in his past that would have led him to go that way?"

"No."

"Any suspicious acquaintances?"

"Seriously, how should I know? What do you even call _suspicious_? I'm not from the Gestapo, damn it!"

She saw Renji ostentatiously widen his eyes in fear. If he was trying to hint her anything resembling an apology, he could keep trying because didn't care _at all_. She met the polar glare of Byakuya without blinking even once. This was _his_ boss, not hers. He'd better not take her for an idiot. But Kuchiki remained calm anyway. His tone only got a little bit drier and more exasperated than before.

"Any acquaintance that could have possibly led him to be found in the situation he was yesterday, which is _definitely_ not regular for a man who has nothing to feel guilty about?"

"No. I didn't use to know all of his friends anyway, but I don't think so."

"Any reason he could have been blackmailed for?"

"No."

"Any idea why he was there?"

"… No."

"Do you think he killed those people?"

"No."

"Why?"

"I asked him at the hospital."

"You saw him recently then."

"Ah. Yes. Sorry. I forgot. But I wouldn't say we are still in contact though, I just needed to ask him that personally."

"So he told you he didn't?"

"Yes."

"Why do you believe him?"

"It is unlikely to him to lie, and to kill."

"Do you trust that man?"

"I believe what he says."

Byakuya discretely sighed. Karin's terse answers annoyed him. She was indeed concise and effective, which he usually valued, but he paradoxically hated to worm things out of people during interrogations, so, _for once_ , he would have largely appreciated if she was a little more talkative in order for him to make up his mind on the matter. He changed the approach.

"How did you two met?"

"He was a friend of my brother."

"Are they still friends?"

"I… I believe that they were in good terms the last time they met."

"We'd like to have an interview with your brother. Do you know where we can find him?"

"No."

"Are you not in contact with your own brother?"

"Believe it or not."

"Someone who can know then?"

"No."

"Listen, he might be an essential witness."

"He wouldn't testify."

"Oh and why? Since they are apparently good friends?"

"He's dead. For years now."

"I… See. One last question Miss Kurosaki. Why are you protecting him? What are your interests in doing so?"

"I am not protecting him."

"Maybe, I was asking because your answers do not seem to make a lot of sense. If I may give you a piece of advice… Chose your side wisely."

"I do _not_ need to chose. We have broken up. He can cope with his own life all by himself. But you asked me questions, and even though I can't bear the guy anymore, I have no reason to want him to go to prison if he's innocent. So I've made my best to answer your questions truthfully, if you don't like it, it will be the same anyway. Who do you think you are to decide whether or not I'm telling the truth? I work here, and I have sworn to be honest. I am sorry if that was not what you wanted to hear. Maybe you didn't suspect it, but I have a minimum of ethics you see?"

Byakuya didn't answer anything for a while, and just stared silently at her. He eventually and astonishingly _smiled_ for the first time since the beginning of the interview. It was a small and rather cold smile though; a satisfied smile, but every track of scorn had disappeared from his face. This reaction, however discreet it was, induced Karin to freak out a bit. Did she say something wrong? Should she _actually_ have called her attorney? She didn't even have one. She anxiously bit her inferior lip, but to her relief, he set her free.

"Very well. That will be all for today Miss Kurosaki."

"It's about time!"

Even if she bragged a bit because she felt angry and frustrated, she was still nervous as she watched him standing. The Captain started to leave without paying her any more attention, when she dared ask what she was itching to.

"You're Rukia's _brother_ , right?"

"I do not see how this information can be relevant."

"Whatever, everybody knows that anyway. It is relevant because you should have _known_ that Ichigo is dead."

Byakuya looked her up and down a moment. His grey eyes didn't express anything and his whole face was slowly turning back from neutral cold to a contorted expression she couldn't interpret. He said nothing and left. Ouch, Rukia was right. The guy company wasn't pleasure cruise. Renji gave her another compassionate glance and rushed behind his superior. Seriously, since when was he so submissive?

Karin didn't really know what to think about that peculiar interview. She headed back to her desk and stopped at Rukia's to recall everything to her.

"You haven't told him for you and Ichigo?"

"Of course I did. But he's convinced that he must be completely neutral and uninfluenced for the investigation. So he acts just as if you were a random stranger and he knew nothing about you. He asked about Ichigo because he would have if that concerned anyone else he didn't know. He sort of pretend he never saw you, so at that moment, he probably didn't even remember that _my_ Ichigo was _your_ brother."

"That's why he insisted that much. It was almost hurtful."

"Yeah, I understand. Just… Please, don't be mad at him, he didn't mean to do that to you."

"Nice of him. That's stupid right?"

"Pretty much, I think. I respect his choices, but I know it is very disagreeable to be treated all of the sudden as a complete stranger. You two never properly met or engaged any form of discussion formerly, if I'm not mistaken?"

"No, and I don't believe it needs to happen again any kind of soon. This time was enough for my whole life I think. Oh, listen, I know he's your brother, I shouldn't say that."

"Don't worry. People often misjudge him, I can see why, but I know that deeply inside he's not like that. It's a shame that you only happen to know him through work. He is a good person. He really is. He's just… tough with rules."

"Okay, then let's say I believe you."

"Besides, I just think that this morning… According to what you told me, I think that he actually decided you were worth respect. So congratulations Karin, because that sure wasn't easy."

"What are you talking about now?"

"Well… When Byakuya interrogates people, he notes everything, including the behavior and coherence in their comments. Then he decides if they are worth to be taken seriously, or if he needs to actually check what they told him with other witnesses or physical proofs insofar as possible. It's like a… a sort of test if you want. He probably found you unpleasant but noble in your actions and honest. You probably don't care, but I can assure that for someone like him, it really is something!"

"I'm so messed-up right now I don't even know if I care or not. It's like everyone is trying to drive me crazy."

"I'm sure it will end soon."

"Yeah."


	6. Chapter 6

The first thing Karin noticed as she came in the following week was the particularly agitated atmosphere in the office. Instead of going to their barracks and start their day of work, people from several divisions had remained in the main hall and were ferociously debating with one another. She both felt relieved because her lateness would remain unnoticed, and a little concerned about the reasons for such tension.

The young girl spotted Rukia, Renji and Tatsuki in a corner and went through the room to meet them. She quickly learnt that it had apparently been decided the FBI should be implicated in the triple murder affair. That fact had ostensibly brought a lot of resentment among her friends, and moreover, within all the divisions. Since her beginnings within the police, there had never been a case important enough for the FBI to get involved. Nevertheless, the discontent was palpable enough for her to guess the others had evidently encountered that kind of situation yet, and were not looking forward to renew the experience. She remarked a few Captains only a few steps away from them, vivaciously conversing.

She said nothing and listened to her friends, in order to identify why that collaboration was such of a problem. She had always heard of the hatred between the police and the FBI, but never known its real causes. There were seemingly two possible results of the involvement of the FBI: either they decided to completely take the case over and the police had to give it up, either they would decide to cooperate, but treating them like stooges and using debatable methods to solve the case. None of those outcomes were satisfactory, and the general dissatisfaction was worryingly swelling.

A glacial quietness suddenly spread to the whole room. In one single and harmonious movement, everyone went to their assigned workplace by some tacit agreement Karin didn't pick up; until she noticed a black limo entering the parking lot and stopping in front of the main entrance. Yet, if the people physically dispersed to appear to be doing their duty, the attention of all was focused on the car and on who would come out of it. Karin's division had a privileged location, since its French windows offered a direct view on the parking lot and was situated right after the main hall where they all were one minute ago. Once it was empty, the car's door opened. Karin felt everyone tighten up around her as it did.

A young man, barely older than her, came out of it. He had dark hair and a pair of sunglasses hid a part of his face. He was wearing what appeared to be a very expensive costume, as much as she knew. When Rukia successfully caught a glance at him, she rushed on her phone to send a text, probably to the others in further buildings, while whispering out of surprise:

"Oh my God, that's Ishida!"

The name rang a bell, but she wasn't quite sure why.

"Uh, Rukia… Is that good or bad news?"

"Good news! Well… Let's say better than expected."

"Because…?"

"Uryuu Ishida is working in a private agency that is dependent of the FBI; which means that the affair is not considered important enough by the FBI to mobilize its own forces. That is the good news."

"There is bad news too?"

"He's still on the other side. However…"

"Hm?"

Karin ceased looking at the stranger getting closer of her building to look up at Rukia who had stopped in the middle of her sentence. The petite girl pointed at herself and her lips silently formed the word "friend".

"Wait, wha-"

"Shush…"

Since she was shushed, and not knowing what to do with that piece of information, Karin shrugged before going back to the principal attraction. The young man entered the room. Everyone was sending him defying glares, except Rukia who was smiling to the top of her desk and apparently voluntarily avoiding the opportunity to eye contact him. He cleared his throat before ceremoniously taking the floor, apparently very much aware to be the center of the attention.

"Does anyone know if Kurosutchi Nemu or Mayuri are here today? I have an appointment with the 12th division, and I'd rather talk to the persons in charge."

The already strong muteness intensified so much it became dense. The whole room seemed to be frozen in time. No one moved nor answered anything.

"Would anyone at least lead me to their laboratory, please? So I can wait for one of them to show up?"

The lack of reaction and always thickening stillness felt like a gust of cold wind.

"Shall I remind you that you have to cooperate as an order?"

"Like you need our cooperation to go and see them."

Karin hadn't caught who had retorted, but the hostility was so tangible that any of the employees here could have. The person who had eventually broken the silence was just translating out loud what everyone else was wordlessly radiating.

Even if the squelch was clearly not made to be agreeable in any way, the Ishida boy discreetly sighed in relief. The absence of reaction was by far the worst. However, he remarkably maintained his composure and replied with a very steady tone.

"My time is as precious as yours. Let's not waste any of it."

"You know the way, why do you even bother asking?"

"Because I thought some respect would be an appreciable change in this company. Apparently I was too ambitious."

"You wanna talk about respect? You really _sure_ you wanna do that?"

The FBI boy swallowed and lengthily exhaled before responding, with a very slow delivery, carefully calculating the impact of each of his words.

"I know some of my colleagues do not care about the procedure or the concept of mutual aid, but I am a little more considerate about that. I really wish I could establish something closer to solidarity, but I need your help for this purpose. So, would anyone mercifully condescend to accompany me and use his badge so I do not have to look like the asshole of the FBI who forces his way down?"

"Okay, whatever dude, I'll do it."

Karin had spoken, and after she quite impulsively had, she noticed with a frown that she was now the target of the whole room's despising glares. She would have done anything to flee her paperwork whatsoever, but she did not suspect she'd get a unanimous scowl. She instantly got mad.

"Hey, you want my picture?"

"Wait, aren't you Ichigo Kurosaki's sister? Aren't you Karin?"

The brunette had previously assumed that the atmosphere couldn't be tenser, and the lethal silence thicker. She had been mistaken for both of those thoughts. She reasonably understood that she had to urgently get away with that man, throw him into this laboratory, and come back as soon as she could. She comprehended now why Rukia was avoiding any contact with him, even though it was quite unlikely, coming from her. She should have gotten the hint earlier. She swallowed and pursued, straightening herself and trying to not seem too friendly.

"Uh… What the fuck? Yes, I am?"

"You work for the police?"

"Well, in case that wasn't obvious enough…"

"I see. I was a friend of your brother."

"Uh cool, but I never met you before, so that's a fat lot of good."

She turned round without saying anything more; he'd just follow and maybe have the decent idea to shut the fuck up. The sole fact that she had decided to help him seemed to be already too welcoming for the others.

As she left, the corner of her eye caught the sight of Rukia staring at her with a bemused smile. Necessarily, if she already knew that man and if he was indeed a former friend of Ichigo, the randomness of them unexpectedly sharing bonding time must have something amusing. Even more then since she had got him out of a bad situation. Family's instinct, probably.

Once they were away, far from indiscreet earing and going to the 12th division's quarters in the basement, he started talking out of the blue.

"I'm sorry about this. Thank you for the effort."

"Welcome."

He remained silent for a moment before talking again, to her great annoyance. Her team had slowly started less and less looking at her and recalling her arrest, and there she was, as a perfect idiot, taking side with the only person she shouldn't have. Good for her, really, she was going to love her work much more for the next months. This whole situation was just plainly absurd and stupid. She was glad she had been helpful, this Ishida boy seemed to be a decent guy, and as stubborn as she could be, she couldn't deny he had tried his best to be cordial. She just wished her coworkers weren't dumbasses for this once.

"You look like him a lot."

This statement took her completely off-guard. She blinked several time, before pouting and looking the other way.

"Ichigo? Didn't know he had boobs."

"You know what I mean. Don't pretend the contrary. You sound a lot like him."

"Do I?"

He couldn't contain a small, nostalgic grin before answering her.

"He was also quite… Informal, whatever the situation. Oh and you're dating Chad, right? He was a good friend of mine too."

Her face immediately clouded over. _That's_ why "Ishida" sounded familiar. She mumbled something inaudible so he had to make her repeat.

"I _was_ dating Chad. We broke up a few months ago. How do you know him by the way?"

"Seriously, he never spoke about me? I'm a little offended. He, Ichigo and I are friends since high school."

"Oh. Okay. How come I never saw you hanging out with them then?"

"Ah, well… We had very different… _extra scholar activities_ , and right after high school we decided to go through totally opposite paths. We stayed in touch but rarely had the opportunity to see one another in person. And when I heard what happened to Ichigo, I… It's a shame I didn't spend more time with him while he was still alive."

"If you say so."

"Wait, so… You're telling me that you're involved in Chad's problem but you've had no contact with him for the last months?"

"You got it."

"Hm… I need to go and see him faster than I thought."

"You're his friend and you still haven't visited?"

"I just came back into town. I had him on the phone but I think you can understand why I didn't wish to talk. Did _you_ visit him?"

"Why would I have? I have nothing to do with him now."

"Maybe he has things to say."

"He'll tell them his attorney."

"Maybe he has things to say to _you_."

"Maybe I don't want to hear them."

"How would you know?"

"What do you care, exactly? And whatever, I don't know why I'm agreeing to have this conversation, _anything_ Chad can have to say, I don't want to hear it. It's not my concern anymore. By the way, how come that you can be working on the matter since you know him personally?"

"I'm not going to really get implicated, I'm more or less here shuttle back and forth between the police and the Quincy agency. I'm here to open a dialogue. Peacefully, if possible."

"Lucky you."

"Well, considering how well that went… I hope I'll be luckier in the future."

They did the rest of their march quietly. As they were taking the elevator to go down to the laboratory, he spoke again, but this time she felt some uneasiness in his voice that made her look directly at him, but he was staring at the floor. He wasn't trying to chat with he dead friend's sister anymore; the matter seemed to be really important to him. But _why?_

"Do you know who's there? Is Nemu here, or is Mayuri working by himself today?"

"I'm not really up with their schedule, but I don't think Nemu is supposed to come that early today."

"Oh. Okay."

His features saddened a little, but Ishida didn't add anything. Karin had sworn to not get interested in him. She was weary of getting constantly sent back to the past because of all those people who knew Ichigo, and systematically took some insane pleasure to remember how nice he was, and what a loss it had been. She seriously didn't need them to be aware of that.

But despite all her promises, that last reaction of his had piqued her curiosity, and she hated herself for being so interested in other persons' business. Being confined in the microcosm that was the police really gave her some bad habits.


End file.
